DELICIOUS WEIL OF A TIME (part 1)

 

Pomelo is a fruit that's associated with Perak especially in the town of Tambun. It's only befitting that the first dish to welcome us to Ipoh's WEIL Hotel is this palate-pleasing pomelo salad from TIFFIN All Day Dining Restaurant. Bursts of fruity sweetness mingled with umami savouriness and punchy sharpness of sliced shallots and spring onion in this Thai-inspired pomelo salad adorned with plump blanched prawns. 

Served at WEIL's stylishly designed Tiffin, diners will discover there's more to the outlet's substantial buffet. The a la carte boasts some hidden gems that should satisfy discerning foodies, ranging from a Balinese slanted satay lilit to its excellent Penang prawn noodles.

The secret lies in the capable hands of Tiffin's chef de cuisine Lee Choon Boon (pix below) and his team. Following several successful international hotel stints, this affable Ipoh guy aims to conquer his own home turf. His dishes have been great testaments thus far...you have to taste them to believe it.

 

The uber-delicious prawn mee stock comes in fiery red-masala hue; its full-bodied, savoury depth culled from a mixture of dried shrimp, prawn shells and heads that teases your palate with prawny sweetness amidst riffs of warm zingy chilli heat. Teamed with sizeable sea prawns, hard-boiled egg, kangkung (water convulvus), beansprouts and sliced fish cake (Tiffin is pork-free), the noodles can rival the best in Penang.

Weekdays see a mostly business and corporate crowd partaking Tiffin's Asian buffet (RM35++ per person) while weekend tunch (tea & lunch RM47++) lets you feast from 12 noon to 4 pm. From our experience, the buffet has ample choices that should leave you spoiled for choice with several notable offerings worth returning for.

Welcome drinks for guests are served at the cosy Tea Lounge one level up. A serene haven filled with cushy armchairs, comfy settees, modern pendant lights and linear streamlined touches, you can while away an afternoon here over tea and cakes or unwind over Happy Hours with your fave tipples and bar snacks.

We took our own sweet time to savour the refreshing lemongrass mocktail; a simple but meaningful welcome gesture that typifies the cordial charm of Ipoh. Soaking in the quiet atmosphere, this little nook is ideal for reading, business discussions or chilling out post-work.

Aesthetically pleasing interior decor inside the Tea Lounge

Personally I like the muted shades of gray, stone, wood and dusky blue of its soft furnishings - all neutral tones that aren't too feminine or masculine. Teamed with wood and some metal trimmings, it's contemporary decor with subtle retro slants should withstand the passage of time well without being dated too quickly.

 

TO BE CONTINUED...Highlights on The Deck Gastrobar and Yuk Sou Hin coming up. 

For reservations and more information, call tel: +6 05 - 2082 228. WEIL HOTEL IPOH is located at 292, Jalan Sultan Idris Shah, Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia.